Modern corporate enterprises have large volumes of critical data, such as work documents, emails, financial records, etc., that requires backup to prevent data loss. During a typical backup procedure, data stored on client workstations and servers in the enterprise network is sent to a backup storage site (e.g., a data center). Since the amount of data that needs to be backed up can be very large, which is even for a medium-size company can be measured in hundreds of terabytes, the backup process can be very resource intensive and time-consuming. Furthermore, provided that data backup has to be performed frequently, e.g., daily, semi-weekly, the backup process can be quite onerous on the corporate network and computer infrastructure.
However, even frequent data backups cannot fully protect companies from data loss caused by unforeseen events, such as power outages and earthquakes, which can disable client computers and servers, and cause loss of critical data. Typically, during such emergencies, backup systems try to backup all data even if there is a lot of it. Backup destinations are typically selected based on storage parameters, such as its cost or reliability, not taking into account the importance of the source data. And system administrators, responsible for the backup system, must make important and complex decisions regarding backup of critical data under pressure of imminent data loss. Therefore, there is a need for an automated backup system that can be more effective and efficient in handling data backup during emergencies.